Fort McDowell Adventures, Fort McDowell

Learned alot on the trail ride from the guides

When you arrive you check in and pay the tax on the Groupon (in cash-it was $20 for our 4 person ride). Then you go to the arena to be matched with your horse and the ride begins. We arrived 25 minutes early and still felt like we were late because there’s much to do to get everyone going with all the horses! Get there early. There’s a lead trail rider and a conversational guide/rider who keeps everyone riding safely around the sloping desert and through the river at two crossings. He chatted throughout the ride and helped everyone ride properly. A lot of reviews say he’s funny, I found him more cynical than funny, but I kept talking with him because quiet was not what I expected on “a wonderful fun experience” as the other reviews suggested. In Feb at 59 degrees a light sweatshirt, jeans, sneakers and hat were comfortable. There’s a bag attached to your saddle that can hold a water bottle and phone, keys. No other bags allowed-you wouldn’t want the bulk anyway. You have to remember that you’re riding a 1500lb animal who you must pay attention to, the horse will do what it wants if you let it! All the horses are awesome and healthy. Pictures will be taken for you while at one spot in the journey, nothing fancy or posed, but you’ll have proof of your ride. Once you get back to the arena, it is customary to tip your guide. We split the tip between the guide and the lead gal. Even though the lead didn’t engage with us really, she got us through the desert safely at a good pace. The guide really didn’t make our ride as enjoyable as many of the other reviews suggested he would, so my unmet expectations based on reviews is really why I wrote this review as truthfully as our experience was. Would I go again? Probably-it was pretty and my expectations would be more realistic. I would not go for a birthday or celebration of anything-just for the ride on those terrific horses in the beautiful desert and nothing more.

Really well run and the team there was great!

Very good tour, just long enough for our bottoms. The guides were great! Beautiful Indian reservation also!